Oil-Free Kale & Sunflower Seed Pesto

Throwback to last Thanksgiving, my sister and I made an entire vegan spread, I’m talking shaved brussels sprouts salad + dried cranberries with a mock bacon & mustard vinaigrette, macaroni and cheese, lemon pepper green beans, a stuffed loaf and the true masterpiece of comfort – mashed potatoes. But these weren’t just any mashed potatoes, no no, my sister made them swirled with a kale, sunflower seed and edamame pesto. Packed with garlic, lemon zest and juice. They were INCREDIBLE. So incredible, I ate it as leftovers for 3 days afterwards. Aren’t leftovers the best?! That’s another story, but I’m a huge fan of leftovers – especially from holiday meals! Needless to say, I HAD to remake her pesto. I omitted the oil, added a couple extras and think it’s pretty darn delicious! So far I’ve used it on roasted veggies, gluten-free pasta, toasted bagels, crackers and as a dip for raw veggies. I think I’ve quality tested this recipe enough, finally ready to share it with all of you – hope you enjoy!

If you didn’t already know, this recipe is of course vegan and gluten-free. It contains everything I love and more – I’m looking at you lemon, garlic and kale.

Long story short, I have an addiction to all things citrus and green. If you follow me on Snapchat (psvegan), you’ll see that I use lemons and limes in a lot of recipes I share. As well as hot sauce, cause anything spicy makes me happy!

Let me know what you think of this pesto, it’s a little different but has an incredible flavorful and it’s very easy to make. Anything that requires less than 10 minutes prep, less than 10 ingredients AND tastes this good should be added to your list of recipes to try. I promise it’s worth it. Feel free to omit kale for spinach, sunflower seeds for walnuts and create a combination that works for you, your diet and tastebuds – a have a similar variation using walnuts and spinach – here.

Comments

Hi Clair, absolutely! Adjust to your own taste. This would be great with basil and/or spinach. I used kale because I usually have it on hand, but I never remember to pick up basil. Feel free to adjust this recipe as needed to what’s available to you. Hope you enjoy!

I actually used the Gardein loaf and the macaroni and cheese recipe from Veggies Don’t Bite. I have a couple older ones already on my blog, I’ll definitely be working on a newer version this year. My goal is to share a loaf recipe too, before the holidays!
Thanks so much, I appreciate you taking the time to read my content <3